Perks of Being a Wallflower: Book Review

Sometimes when I see a book turned movie first, before reading the book, I immediately head out to the nearest B&N right after to buy the book and start reading. I usually try and read the book first, but sometimes that doesn't happen. To be honest, majority of the time the books are always better, except in this instance, with Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky and also when I read P.S I love you. Both times I saw the movie prior to reading the book, so that might have something to do with it, but I truly loved the characters and the way the scenes played out better on the big screen. So you might see where I'm going with this book review.

Synopsis According to Barnes&Noble:

Standing on the fringes of life...

offers a unique perspective. But there comes a time to see what it looks like from the dance floor.

This haunting novel about the dilemma of passivity vs. passion marks the stunning debut of a provocative new voice in contemporary fiction: The Perks of Being a Wallflower.

This is the story of what it's like to grow up in high school. More intimate than a diary, Charlie's letters are singular and unique, hilarious and devastating. We may not know where he lives. We may not know to whom he is writing. All we know is the world he shares. Caught between trying to live his life and trying to run from it puts him on a strange course through uncharted territory. The world of first dates and mixed tapes, family dramas and new friends. The world of sex, drugs, and The Rocky Horror Picture Show, when all one requires is that perfect song on that perfect drive to feel infinite.

Through Charlie, Stephen Chbosky has created a deeply affecting coming-of-age story, a powerful novel that will spirit you back to those wild and poignant roller coaster days known as growing up.

My Review:

I picked up this book on Black Friday, a few weeks after having seen the movie, which I fell in love with in the theaters. The book is written in letter-form, different letters that Charlie writes periodically beginning in August of 1991, his first year of high school. The book is very different from the movie, and I found myself falling more in love with the scenes in the movie, rather than the book. The characters are described perfectly in the book; and I enjoyed the relationships that were developing between Charlie and Bill, and Charlie and his friends Sam and Patrick, the kind of friendship I wish I had. I feel as if Charlie is an extremely relatable character, whether you're a freshman in high school or a senior in college. He sees himself in a certain way, and has trouble being positive most of the time. I think we can all look back on certain parts of our life, and know that we were Charlie. He's a wallflower - he sees things, keeps quite about them, and understands. Most of us, at least now a days, aren't wallflowers; we're too excited to pass along the information or start rumors about what we've seen, but we can all learn a lot from young Charlie. 

My favorite part in the book, as well as the movie, was the Secret Santa exchange and I'm glad they didn't change much in the movie. 

Charlie, we find out, is an innocent victim, but he doesn't even realize it... though with the help of a psychiatrist, he just might realize what happened to him in the past, and learn that addictions to drugs and cigarettes cannot help him forget or move on. His breakdown is incredible heartbreaking and it creates the passion in me to help children, like Charlie. Through Charlie's letters you are able to get a sense of everything that Charlie is thinking and some of it is funny because his written thoughts are the same as my unwritten thoughts, sometimes, and his life seems relatable in a sense - a dad who hates showing his vulnerable emotions, a sister who is there for her siblings, but still fights with them from time to time, a mother who doesn't work and puts on a smile pretending everything is okay, and crazy dramatic family members. 

I have to admit, I loved the movie more than I liked the book. I felt like I was able to connect more with the characters on the screen. If I hadn't seen the movie, I probably wouldn't have ever read this book. 

"We accept the love we think we deserve" (page 24).

"It's strange because sometimes, I read a book, and I think I am the people in the book" (page 28).

"And in that moment, I swear we were infinite" (page 39).

"Everything has already happened, so it makes it hard to break new ground. Nobody can be as big as the Beatles because the Beatles already gave it a 'context.' The reason they were so big is that they had no one to compare themselves with, so the sky was the limit" (page 104-105). 

My Rating: 3 Stars